Secure your company resources the easy way with proximity cards

When you manage a business how do you ensure that each of your employees only has access to the areas of the building and the equipment that you want them to be able to access? You could employ a team of security men to guard sensitive areas or patrol your building but that is expensive, labour intensive and not 100% effective. A much more effective means of controlling the physical access of your employees is through the use of proximity cards. By issuing each member of your staff with a proximity card you can be assured that access to your high-security areas or company equipment is not compromised. Everyone will be able to go where they need to go but no further.

What are proximity cards?

A proximity card can be thought of as a type of smartcard. The cards have a built-in antenna which enables them to be read when they come within range of a designated reader. The reader checks the ID of the proximity card to see whether or not a particular employee should be granted access to the area of equipment. Card readers can be easily attached to doors, computers or any other company resource, such as web access, email encryption, or even access to the company car park. They are ideal for use anywhere you might wish to restrict access.

Reading your proximity cards

Proximity cards will typically  work at a range of 2.5" to 20" depending on the type of reader you choose, this means that you don’t have to waste time inserting the card into the reader or pressing it against the reader, the card just needs to be in the general vicinity of the reader to operate. This flexibility has allowed the cards to find a wide range of uses. The majority of proximity card readers use rechargeable batteries, although others are fitted with a battery back up system meaning that you normally don’t need to worry about situating them near an electricity supply since they will work anywhere.

Getting started with proximity cards

If you are considering using proximity cards in your business then one of the first decisions you must make is what type of proximity card you wish to use. HID Proximity Cards are a good choice. They offer a consistent read range and provide a straightforward and affordable way of securing your company resources. These cards are not impacted by environmental conditions or body shielding. They will still work even if kept close to metal objects such as coins or keys. HID proximity cards are durable and available in either PVC or heat resistant composite construction. The cards are available in a range of ISO thicknesses between 0.027" to 0.033" and can include standard anti-counterfeiting and visual security features to help secure your business. Optional extras include logos, ultra-violet fluorescent inks, and holograms. If you wish you can create proximity cards that are thin enough to fit in a wallet, or you might prefer to combine your proximity cards and photo ID cards into a single piece of plastic.

Choosing the right format

When setting up your proximity card system you must get the technology side right as it can be expensive if you to change at a later point. The industry-standard format for proximity card readers is the 26-bit  (H10301) this offers 255 potential facility codes with each code containing 65,535 possible unique card numbers. However, there is a wide range of other formats available include proprietary 37-bit format, and Corporate 1000 format. Some of them are dedicated to access control systems and some will work with other formats. If you are in any doubt about which you should choose it’s important to check with your supplier before you make a purchase.

Consider using QuickShip for your proximity cards

When you need your proximity cards programmed quickly then the most effective solution is to use the IDSecurity Online QuickShip program. ID Security Online program all QuickShip proximity cards onsite which allows them to provide you with a rapid card delivery service. The service is designed to be very affordable and all QuickShip cards are shipped within two business days so you will be able to issue the new cards to your employees without delay.

Which cards are available as ‘QuickShip’

One of the advantages of using QuickShip to purchase all of your programmed proximity cards is that not only do they ship to you quickly but there is a full range of proximity cards available just waiting to be programmed and sent out to you. You can choose from cards made from either PVC or PET/PVC composite whichever is right for you. If you work with a retransfer printer then composite cards would be your best option while PVC cards are best used with a direct-to-card printer. In addition to the material from which the cards are made the QuickShip option also allows you to select cards with or without a magnetic stripe so you can be confident of finding exactly the cards, you need to affordably keep your business safe and secure.